


Credit Where It's Due

by Denizen_of_Dreamland



Series: Adaruki Roleswap AU [1]
Category: Persona 4, Persona 5
Genre: 30 Day OTP AU Challenge, Alternate Universe - Police, Gen, Gen or Pre-Slash, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Out of Context Spoilers, Present Tense, Stream of Consciousness, Workplace
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-17
Updated: 2020-09-17
Packaged: 2021-03-08 01:35:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,348
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26517547
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Denizen_of_Dreamland/pseuds/Denizen_of_Dreamland
Summary: Dojima doesn't have any complaints about his junior partner, Takuto Maruki. Except, of course, for his stubbornness, which has proved to be both his greatest strength and his greatest weakness while working on the force.Then again, Dojima is one to talk.
Relationships: Dojima Ryotaro/Maruki Takuto
Series: Adaruki Roleswap AU [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2024963
Comments: 2
Kudos: 13





	Credit Where It's Due

**Author's Note:**

> **Prompt:**  
>  Day 11: Cops (or cop/criminal) AU  
> Since Dojima is already a cop, all I did was replace Adachi with Maruki. Enjoy!

For a rookie, Maruki’s pretty decent at his job. Dojima is willing to admit that much, because the guy has earned the recognition.

He works relentlessly both day and night, on the weekdays and on the weekends, rain or shine, no matter what. His work ethic is impeccable; Dojima has never heard so much as a peep out of him when he has to stay at the station until late or when he’s asked to work the night shift, he hasn’t turned in a single report late, and, as if that wasn’t enough, the townspeople love him, to the extent that they frequently ask for him at the front desk. It’s not a surprise, to be honest. He’s always been great at handling civvies, even when they’re panicking, lashing out, in pain, or just distrustful of cops in general.

Much like Dojima, Maruki is fully devoted to his mission of protecting the residents of Inaba. He doesn’t care that his hours are shit, that the station lacks resources, that Dojima’s demands are too strict at times, or that his paycheck leaves much to be desired. The simple knowledge that what he’s doing helps the townspeople feel safe seems to be more than enough for him. It’s nothing short of admirable; that sort of commitment is surely a refreshing sight to see in an understaffed, underfunded precinct such as this one.

To be honest, Dojima is... just the slightest bit impressed. Not that he would say it out loud, because that might cause Maruki to get too confident in his abilities and loosen up, but he really does think that the younger detective is a valuable addition to the team.

Though, of course, Maruki isn’t perfect, neither as a person nor as a recruit. Ironically, his greatest virtue is also his greatest flaw.

Maruki is so blinded by his passion for helping people that he has no idea when to quit. He won’t hesitate to overstep his boundaries if it’s for “the greater good”, he’ll go off on hunches and tangents, he’ll revisit cases behind Dojima’s back, even if the culprit has already been found, and, if he thinks he’s got a lead, he’ll pursue it to the ends of the Earth, at the risk of getting in trouble with the higher ups.

Despite his appearance, he  _ is _ a bit of a loose cannon. Though it’s not uncommon among rookies to act all righteous, eager to kick down the bad guys and save the good guys, like some kind of real life superhero, it wouldn’t be much of a problem if weren’t because Maruki is so damn stubborn -- he’s the kind of man who you would find repeatedly walking into a wall and banging his head, over and over again, but, even if you were to show him where the door is, he’d insist on banging his head against his chosen spot on the wall, convinced that  _ that’s _ where the door should be.

He doesn’t understand that, when your job is unearthing the truth, relying on instinct is usually more of a waste of time than an actual strength. 

As the senior partner, Dojima has taken it upon himself to try to put the younger detective in line. It has given him many a headache, but Maruki is actually a pretty pleasant person to be around, and Yu and Nanako seem to like him, so he’s good in his book.

After Dojima finishes his work for the day, he approaches Maruki. The younger man is hunched over his desk, his brows furrowed in frustration, as he scrutinizes some documents over a manilla folder, fully enraptured by his job.

Upon seeing him, Dojima instantly  _ gets _ it.

He’s working on the burglary case.

He has to be. He wouldn’t be so intensely focused if it were any other case. After all, the burglary case is  _ that _ case, the one that’s been eating away at Maruki’s life, claiming all of his time and energy, corroding his sanity bit by bit, while the last shred of hope he has left keeps cracking and falling apart as time passes and the case refuses to progress.

In a way…

It’s Maruki’s hit-and-run.

Dojima sighs. Maruki is putting too much effort into it, especially considering that there’s a serial killer on the loose right now and the department wants everyone to focus on that. He’s starting to feel that he should be harder on Maruki...

But, then again… 

Chastising Maruki for devoting his time to the other case would be hypocritical. Plus, the poor guy is constantly bending over backwards to get everything done, defying logic to be able to please everyone around him without abandoning his own personal goals, and sacrificing his social life, his free time, and quite possibly his mental health for the sake of doing what he considers to be right. When it comes down to it... as long as the burglary case doesn’t interfere with the rest of Maruki’s responsibilities, it shouldn’t be a source of concern. The case does need to be solved, after all.

What Dojima is worried about is that, although Maruki’s endurance is no joke, it can only last so long. And Dojima wouldn’t want his junior partner to break down or collapse on him while on the job, because not only would that make him feel like shit, but it would hinder their investigation, which might cause issues for Maruki’s career in the long run.

Maruki still hasn’t noticed Dojima’s presence, so he speaks up. “Hey, Maruki.”

He jolts, shoves the papers aside as if that would stop Dojima from seeing them, and smiles. “Ah, Dojima-san. Do you need anything? A coffee to get through the night, maybe?”

“No, nothing like that. I’m going home.”

Maruki’s shoulders relax, as he breathes out in relief. “Oh, that’s good to hear. You’ve been working very hard lately and it must’ve taken a toll on you. I don’t mean to intrude, but... I’m sure you could use some rest.”

“The same could be said of you.” Dojima says, as he glances at the pile of documents. He then makes for the door and gestures for Maruki to follow him. “Let’s go. You’re coming over for dinner.”

“Huh?” Maruki looks up at him quizzically.

Dojima plays it off with a shrug. “Nanako would love to have you.”

“Well, I’d think that the snacks would be way more appealing than the person carrying them.” Maruki chuckles awkwardly. “Either way, who am I to let her down, right?”

Great. He understood that the offer was more of an order than an invitation.

“Right.” Dojima says. “Now, hurry up. I’d like to get there before they eat dinner without us."

“Oh, sure!” Maruki jumps out of his seat, scrambling to pick up the mess sprawled over his desk. “Ah, and thank you, Dojima-san. I appreciate the thought.”

Dojima smiles. “Don’t mention it."

Casually leaning against the doorway, he waits for Maruki to wrap things up and get ready to leave. Once he’s done, they start walking towards the exit, but Maruki hesitates, turns around, and stares at the desk one more time with a discouraged expression, letting out a soft sigh.

It’s a feeling that Dojima knows all too well.

“Hey.” He puts his hand on Maruki’s shoulder, which startles him a little. “Someday, we’ll catch them and we’ll make them pay. I’m sure of it.”

“What do you…?” Maruki trails off, and the realization hits him. He then straightens out his back and frowns, looking deep into Dojima’s eyes, with his face full of pent up rage and unrestrained determination. “Of course. I believe we will. We just have to keep going at any cost.”

Right. Keep going.

Well, Dojima’s not planning to stop anytime soon. And, clearly, neither is Maruki. If they’re both heading down the same path, maybe they can support each other through the endless days and the sleepless nights, through the stress, the isolation, and the burnout, until they can finally rest easy, knowing that justice has been served. 

At least, Dojima is willing to do that much.

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first entry for the [30 day OTP AU Challenge!](https://disastergayshirogane.tumblr.com/post/87725652992/30-day-otp-au-challenge) I'm planning to write more for these prompts, but my writing muse is a rebel, so I probably won't post them in order and definitely not in 30 days.
> 
> Don’t get me wrong, I like Adajima, but I’m LIVING for this dynamic between Dojima and Maruki. I haven't posted much for them because my thoughts are all over the place (I swear, they're my new OTP, and it boggles my mind because they _don't even meet in canon)_ but I promise that I have been writing for them, including fics for the other prompts in this challenge.
> 
> Oh, also, I have a Tumblr now! Yes, I know I'm extremely late to the party, but I wanted to have a way to get in touch with people more easily, so I finally decided to create an account. If you want, drop by and say hi [over here!](https://denizen-of-dreamland.tumblr.com) I'd love to fangirl over Persona with new people :)
> 
> As always, please let me know your thoughts on this fic!


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